Accord to the United Nations cities are unfair environments for women. This is despite the fact that 55 per cent of the global population live in cities. And this number is set to double by 2050, with seven out of every ten people living in urban environments. “The ‘penalties’ women pay for living in cities include violence, poverty, unequal amounts of unpaid care work, limited job opportunities, and a lack of power in public and private decision-making,” the UN Development Program (UNDP) says in a new study.
The study – ‘Designing Cities That Work for Women’ looks at contemporary urban life from the perspective of women from a range of backgrounds to identify problems and find out ways to make cities better. So what needs to change to improve cities for women?
1. A Voice In Leadership Roles
Most cities were designed and built by men, resulting — perhaps unsurprisingly — around policies and including features that often overlook the needs of women. Women remain greatly underrepresented in key decision-making positions, even in developed countries. The report recommends that policymakers in city planning roles should seek out women’s perspectives in order to design spaces that create improvements for everyone. As well as giving women a voice in urban decision-making, leadership, and law making, the use of gender-disaggregated data — which splits data sets into binary male and female categories — can inform design and policy decisions.
2. Cities That Celebrate Female Achievement
Statues, monuments and street names can imbue a sense of urban identity, highlighting the work and achievements of groups and individuals. But, only 4 per cent of statues in cities represent women. The study recommends acknowledging women’s history, providing more inclusive workplaces and schools, safe leisure and cultural spaces, and designing diverse and flexible spaces for the disabled and elderly.
3. Increased Water And Sanitation For All
According to the UN, one in four people do not have access to safe drinking water. Globally, women and girls bear the responsibility of water collection in eight out of 10 households, so are disproportionately affected. And one in three women do not have safe, inclusive toilets, which promotes gender-based violence and exclusion, particularly for elderly and disabled women who tend to avoid visiting areas without accessible public sanitation.
City-planning that works for women’s health and well-being needs to focus on raising water and sanitation facilities, improving standards of healthcare and nutrition, and creating safer, accessible and green environments, urges the UN.
4. Safer Streets, Better Laws, Education
In the UK alone, 71 per cent of women have experienced some form of sexual harassment, while over half of women and girls have experienced violence on public transport in Ethiopia, the UN says. The study promotes the creation of safer streets, public spaces and public transport by using intelligent design. Incorporating violence prevention in laws while educating those that exhibit misogynistic behaviours will also help to reduce violence against women.
Utilizing technology to create a human-centred approach to safety can also make a significant difference for women in urban environments.
It is critical that we design our future cities — and redesign our existing ones — in a holistic way. The World Economic Forum has released a series of reports about “future-ready cities”, which details how to build inclusive environments for all. To tackle the many challenges women face in urban environments, it is vital that under-represented communities be given the opportunity to play a bigger part in making our cities better for everyone.